Saddle construction



July 11, 1944. J. R. BOYLE 2,353,622

SADDLE CONSTRUCTION I Filed April 15; 1942 ATT RNEY Patented July 11, 1944 UNITED sTATss rarlu'r OFFICE SADDLE CONSTRUCTION Jasper Reese Boyle, Maricopa County, Ariz.

Application April 15, 1942, Serial No. 439,041

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improved saddle construction and has for its objects- The construction of a saddle having movable plates contacting the back of the horse and attached by universal ball and socketjoints to the seat frame of the saddle;

A further object is to provide a saddle having a seat including a frame and provided with attachment means on the bottom of the frame supporting a plurality of plates free to move in any direction relative to the plane of contact with the horses back and at the same time free toattain a rotary movement about the place of support.

A still further object is to provide a saddle having seat construction including the usual seat rails, cantle, pommel and horn, with the rails provided with ball and socket joints supporting contact plates at the. frontv and rear of each rail on universal ball and socket joints.y These plates being shaped to conform to the portion of the horses back which they are adapted to contact.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

I attain the foregoing objects by means of the design, construction and mechanism shown in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a front elevation of a saddle including my improved devices;

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof, certain portions being broken away to show interior conn struction;v

Figure 3 is a bottom view of the saddle as shown in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a mid-sectional elevation of one of the ball joints used to attach the contact plates 'f with the saddle rails, drawn on a somewhat enlarged scale;

Figure 5 is a plan View of one of the attachment plates for retaining said ball joint.

Figure 6 is an edge view of one of the front contact plates.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts in the several views.

In the drawing, 2 indicates the saddle frame in general; 3 indicates the rails. These are held together in the usual manner by the cantle 4 at the rear and the pommel bridge 5 at the front, a horn 6 may be attached to the pomme] if the saddle is to be used for roping. As illustrated, these gures refer to the tree only and it is to be understood that the usual trappings and fittings are built up on this skirting with appropriate leather pieces, and the cover attached in the manner usual to saddle construction.

Attached to the frame 2 there are four contact plates, numbered 8, 9, l0 and Il. These are attached to the underside of the rails 3 by ball and socket joints lli. Contact plates 8 and 9 are attached near the forward end of the rails at a point substantially below the center of the pommel on each side. Plates l0 and Il are attached by means of universal ball and socket joints at positions on the rear of the rails substantially below the rear of the cantle 4.

Referring to Figure 4, 9 indicates the contact plate. This is attached by machine screws 21 to a ball supporting plate 20 which carries the ball 2i at the end of a neck 22. The upper end of the ball bears in a semi-spherical socket in block 23 and the lower portion is held in place by a retaining plate 2li. The retaining plate 24 is held in place on block 23 by machine screws Re. These screws are set up with the ball 2| in place.` Thereupon, the assembly is attached to the rail 3 by screws 26. The rail is cut out to receive this assembly 'so that the plate 24 lies iiush with the inner face of the rail. Thereafter the ball plate 201s attached to plate 9 by means of screws 21.

Plates 8 and 9 may be termed the front plates and have a smaller area than the rear plates l0 and ll. It is preferred that the front plates do not extend any substantial distance beyond the rear of the pommel (assuming that theseat is centrally positioned between the pomme] and the cantle). These plates bear upon the front portion of the horses Withers. For this reason the front edge or the noses 3Q cf plates 8 and 9 are turned upward. The degree and the amount of this turn varies with the contour of the back of the horse Von which the saddle is to be used.

rlfhe rear plates Hl and I I are substantially at, both longitudinally and transversely. They are shaped to conform to the central and rear portion of the horses 'back and their aspect plan is such that they conform to the outline of the portion of the rail under which they are positioned. In general the ball supporting plates 2i) are positioned on the contact plates at approximately the center of their area so that Weight transmitted through the supporting joint I4 will be evenly distributed throughout the contact area.

As above stated the ball supporting assembly is attached to the forward and rear portion of the rails at positions approximately equidistant from the center of the seat or load to be carried. Further, the necks 22 of each of the ball joints are made of equal length.

All the foregoing designations, however, are subject to change to accommodate the saddle to special uses. The structure here disclosed readily lends itself to adjustment of loads and uses, depending upon the type of animal on which the saddle is used, the type of rider and the actual use to which the saddle is to be put. Thus, if it is desired to give the seat a backward slant to secure seat comfort when riding a particular animal or over rough terrain, the necks 22 of the ball joints supporting the front plates may be made longer than those supporting the rear plates. This will give the saddle seat the desired rearward slant and throw the weight of the rider against the face of the cantle.

However, where there is a load to be carried on the saddle, in addition to that of the rider, as in heavily loaded military saddles, or the like, and it is desired to throw a substantial portion of the weight to the rear of the saddle, the position of the joints I4 on the plates l0 and Il may be moved forward. Conversely when heavy loads are to be carried in saddle bags attached to the pommel.

The rear edge 3l of the forward plates and the forward edge 32 of the rear plates do not abut but a substantial gap 33 is left between them. In order to yieldably hold the plates in proper relative position flexible thongs 34 are laced through holes 35 in the adjacent edges of these plates.

In use the saddle is built up with the usual covering and trappings. The cinch, legging, stirrups and the like are attached in the usual manner. Preferably stirrup leathers are used which do not loop over the rails but are pivoted above them to provide a free forward swing. The rigging used may be either of the single or double cincha type. The contact plates may be lightly padded. Only a single blanket is used. Skirting, if used at all, is not attached to the rails, but directly to the contact plates. If used it is formed into four portions, front and rear on each side and each loosely laced to the other so as to be yieldably mutually attached.

Since all plates are free to conform with the surface of the horses back which they contact, adequate smooth fit is assured. In addition to this, the plates give with the movement of the muscles and bones of the horses body beneath them. In order to properly accommodate these movements all plates must have a free hingelike movement both longitudinally and transversely at their point of support. Further, and of no less importance, is the rotary movement provided by the supports here disclosed, which permits the plates to rotateV (within limits) on their axis of support to accommodate movements of the horses flesh, muscles and bones beneath the area of contact. This is particularly true of the front plates 8 and 9. Since these are over the horsess Withers, there is a constant tendency to slightly rotate the contacting plate, particularly during walking and trotting. This motion is not so apparent'in the rear plates but is necessary to accommodate shifts in the weight of the rider on the saddle and other varying conditions. When properly applied to a horses back the plates adjust themselves and remain relatively adjusted in secure position throughout use.

This is a different principle than that employed in the saddle of usual construction. In saddles now in common use the rails are made rigid in an attempt to make them generally conform to the structure on the back of the horse on which they are used is made. The tting of the rails to the horses back is never perfect and can only be made approximate. A perfect t is impossible since if it were made friction would occur at the ends of the rails causing gall sores and sore backs even more than is ordinarily the case. Since in any ordinary use of the saddle the weight of the rider and the load shifts from forward to rear this is compensated for by the use of padding. Proper padding helps but is far from ideal since it only compromises the situation as to load pressure. Further padding causes excessive sweating and sweating softens the flesh, making it more susceptible to galling sores. In case a thick pad is used under the saddle and the cinch set down tightly the user may think that the load is distributed but this is not so, it simply means that while there is more pressure applied between the ends of the saddle rails and the horses back, there is still more pressure applied through the middle of the curve Iof the rails directly. under the center of the seat. Therefore, the situation is not remedied but only compromised.

Sore backed horses have always been a detriment and problem to users, particularly where the horse is really Worked hard. Where horses are ridden merely for pleasure and for short periods of time, the real harm does not appear but is nevertheless present.

I am aware that from time to time persons have attempted to remedy these conditions by providing saddle construction with movable or hinged rails, but so far as I am aware, none of these devices heretofore known provide for the full fitting of contact plates as I have herein disclosed; that is, they have never provided devices which permit plates to have longitudinal and transverse adjusting motion, nor these adjustments coupled with the properties of rotation of the contact plates. So far as I am able to ascertain, it has heretofore been thought impractical to attempt to construct a saddle with any movable supporting contact plates as herein disclosed. Therefore, I wish to be limited only by the following claim. 1

I claim: 'Y

Saddle construction comprising, in combination, a saddle tree having rails, forwar and rear plates attached toV each of said rails, .dapted to contact the horses back and coni rm to the contour of the area of contact, unive sal ball and socket joints supporting said Iplates on said rails, and pliant thongs interconnecting plates on each side, to resiliently limit rotative movement thereof.

' J. REESYE BOYLE. 

